Crown Karoke
by DyanaRoseJill
Summary: After Nephrite is banished from the Dark Kingdom, he ends up working at Crown Karoke... which, unfortunately for him, is the hang out for the senshi... the senshi of water and wisdom in particular. Sequel to Darkury and Nephrite... more or less.


**Crown Karoke **

Written with Minxie  
_Originally written Nov. 2006, posted Nov. 2007 _

One of his main jobs now was sweeping the floor, mostly because it was a job where it was very difficult to break things. Nephrite forcefully slammed the broom against the floor, trying to relieve his feelings. He was trapped in this world, in this weak body... Humiliated and abandoned.  
He kept his head down as he worked. That was the best way to stay invisible. He didn't want any of these humans to look at him.  
The former shitennou wanted to go home, more than anything else... 

He was working in the entry way, trying to sweep as quickly as possible so he could get away from everyone, when two girls entered.  
His eyes widened at the sight of the tall girl and her shorter companion, a mild looking girl with glasses and he looked down, staring fixedly at the floor, willing himself to be invisible. 

The girl in the glasses broke off mid-sentence as she saw him.  
"Ami-chan?" the other girl spoke up, "Something wrong?"  
"Uh... iie..." Ami shook her head, "I'm okay." She glanced back at the worker. She was sure that she recognized him. She hadn't seen him before at Crown, but she was sure she knew him from somewhere. 

Nephrite stared at the floor until well after he was sure they were gone. What were two senshi doing here? They couldn't be after him... could they? He hurried through his chores, hoping to finish and make it safely back to his storage room before they came out again. He never really paid any attention to how long the humans stayed. 

As he went around a corner, he came face-to-face with Ami, and his heart nearly stopped.  
"Gomen," Ami apologized. She had almost walked into him after all.  
He tightened his hold on the broom defensively, and looked away from her.  
That reaction was so familiar... but it couldn't be... He had... she had seen him... but yet... It was him! Ami's eyes widened, How could he be here?  
Nephrite caught the look in her eyes.  
Ami turned away, her cheeks going slightly pink. "... gomen..." she repeated, sidestepping around him and making a hasty exit.  
She couldn't figure out how he had gotten there... she had seen him die...  
Ami shuddered and winced at that memory.  
Yet, somehow, here he was. Not that she minded. 

She knew... Mercury knew... Nephrite turned tail and fled, hurrying back to the storage room to hide. He locked the door and sank down to the ground. If Mercury knew, she would probably tell the others. It wasn't safe here anymore... but he had no where else to go.  
No matter how he thought about this, it had to turn out badly. 

The days passed and the senshi would appear at Crown nearly every day, but Nephrite couldn't stay locked in the storeroom all day long. Whenever they would come he would keep his head down, holding his broom defensively. 

But none of the senshi ever seemed to take any notice of him, so he slowly relaxed. It seemed that Mercury hadn't told any of the others. 

He hazarded a glance upwards at her when she walked past. What sort of trick was she pulling? He knew that she at least always watched him whenever she came past.  
Their eyes met and she looked away. 

Although she wasn't the most astute of people when it came to emotions, Ami could see the pain in his eyes, and it wasn't nice.  
He turned and looked pointedly at the floor, waiting for her to leave. He wished that she wouldn't watch him so much... it was almost as though she enjoyed seeing him reduced to this. He glanced at her out of the corner of one eye.  
She wasn't look triumphant, or even like she was enjoying herself... in fact... she looked concerned. He turned to look at her properly. She hadn't come here to gloat?  
He sighed at what he saw in her eyes. He didn't want her pity. 

Ami looked away again. It was just the same as it had been before. She had only a few memories of being in the Dark Kingdom, but she could remember how he had been then... 

"Leave me alone," he murmured finally.  
She took a step back. What was she to say to that?  
"Why have you come here?" he asked.  
"We... meet here... for karaoke," she answered, "And to chat."  
He didn't quite believe that one. "... Do they others know?" he asked softly.  
"Iie," she shook her head. 

That was a relief. But... "how do you know?"  
Ami gave a slight shrug, "I... don't know," she admitted.  
"Oh," he said simply. 

"... Are you alright?" she asked finally.  
"I don't want your pity," he responded with a half-growl.  
"Tough," she said softly.  
Nephrite closed his eyes in defeat. He had been doing that a lot lately.  
"I... have to meet my friends," Ami said with a soft sigh, "... take care..." She hurried off before he could see her blush.  
She didn't need to worry, he wasn't watching. 

The former shitennou sighed. He hadn't thought it was possible for things to get worse, but they had. Apparently he wasn't even allowed to keep his pride...  
What right did Mercury have to be worried about him? Nephrite growled softly, but it was weak. For once in his life he couldn't even get properly angry.  
Why was she worried about him?  
Nephrite pushed that thought away almost violently. He didn't need this.  
He hurried back to his storeroom. 

Nephrite hadn't broken anything or argued with anyone for three days now. Motoki-baka had commented that soon he would actually be earning money instead of using it to pay off all the things he broke. But what did he care about money? Nothing mattered anymore. Sweeping the 

floor and sitting in the storeroom amounted to about the same now.  
The senshi seemed to spend an inordinate amount of time at Crown, but he didn't care anymore. Only Mercury knew who he was, and she wasn't a threat. 

Whenever she came in, she always offered him a smile. At first he had growled and looked away, but now he just sadly looked down at whatever task he was doing. Today it was washing the front windows.  
Ami felt sorry for him. She wished she could make him smile just once.  
As she walked past, he accidentally dropped the sponge. She automatically retrieved it. Nephrite silently held out his hand to take it, not looking at her.  
"You missed a bit," she said gently, using the sponge to clear off some streaky bits he had left on the glass.  
"Don't..." he said softly, "I don't need your help."  
"You still missed it," she said gently, "And it's not bad to let someone help." 

Nephrite didn't respond, staring firmly at the ground. He had the whole uninteresting floor of Crown memorized by now. She didn't understand... how could she? It didn't matter to her that he couldn't do anything anymore. Not even clean windows... servant work... 

Ami held the sponge out to him, her eyes gentle. It wasn't fair for him to be here like this... She wanted to help him. Even if he had been her enemy in the past, he wasn't any more.  
The former shitennou couldn't take this anymore. He turned tail and ran, retreating to the only haven he had left - the storeroom.  
Ami stared at him for a moment and then followed. She hesitated for a moment and then quietly 

turned the handle of the door. She knew she should probably leave him alone, but it didn't feel right to just leave him. She quietly pushed the door open and stepped into Nephrite's sanctuary. 

It was a tiny room with a cot against one of the walls and not too much else. Nephrite was curled up against the far wall, shaking just slightly.  
Her heart wrenched at how unhappy he looked... what could she do? He just looked so miserable. She bit her lower lip and then hesitantly walked over to him.  
At the sound of her footsteps he looked up warily.  
Ami's heart wrenched again at the sight of his tear streaked cheeks. Part of her wanted to hug him, but the other part of her knew that he would just push her away. 

Nephrite sighed and laughed humorlessly.  
Ami blinked at that.  
"Once again, I see I was wrong Mercury-san."  
"Nani?" she blinked.  
"Every time I think that I cannot be brought any lower... something else happens," he sighed, "I have nothing... I even need a senshi to help me with servant's tasks."  
"You don't need my help," she said after a moment.  
"But you said it yourself, I wasn't doing it properly."  
"I didn't say that, I said you'd missed some," she said, "Everyone makes mistakes."  
"I don't want your help and I don't want your pity," he said quietly, "That only makes it worse."  
Ami sighed heavily.  
"I have your pity because of how weak and pitiful I am," he said quietly.  
"You aren't weak and pitiful!" she said firmly, and then blushed. 

"Don't mock me," he said softly.  
Ami set her lips, "I am not."  
"Then why are you lying to me?"  
"I am not," she repeated, holding back a sigh. How could she explain to him that there was nothing weak or pitiful about him? "This... This is better than being dead..." she said hesitantly.  
"No," he said, "It isn't."  
"What?" she blinked, "Why?"  
"I am one of the Great Four – one of the Shitennou. I cannot just live as a human."  
Ami sighed, "you would rather Beryl had killed you properly?" He nodded slowly, "but instead... she banished me 

"I'm sorry..." she said softly. She wasn't sure what she was sorry for, but she was.  
"I told you, I don't need your pity."  
"I am not pitying you," she sighed sharply, "But you're being ridiculous! You can't just sit and feel sorry for yourself! You're not pathetic and you're not weak, but you are stupid. You should be happy you aren't dead!"  
Her sudden explosion made him look at her properly.  
"So why are you complaining?" she questioned, her eyes flashing behind her glasses.  
"And just why do you say that I'm not weak and pathetic?" he demanded.  
"Because you aren't!"  
"I am too!"  
"No you are not!"  
"Just look at me!" he snapped, ending the are-too, are-not argument, "I'm not who I used to be!"  
"So what?" Ami retorted. 

"And what do you think I should do then?" he responded sarcastically.  
"I think you should stop moping around and get on with life!"  
"Like this?" he scoffed.  
"Well if you'd stop moping you might find that you like it!"  
"Ha," he snorted, "What is there to like?"  
"What do you mean by that? Here is far better than the Dark Kingdom."  
Nephrite turned away, "How?"  
Ami didn't have an immediate answer to that one. It seemed too obvious.  
"Well?" he demanded. 

"You are stupid," she grumbled, frustrated.  
"And weak and pathetic, I know," he finished.  
"Oh stop that!"  
"What more do you want from me?" he asked softly.  
"I want you to stop being ridiculous!" she responded, and then softened her tone, "Stop hating everything. It's not good for you and will only make you unhappy."  
"I already am unhappy," Nephrite pointed out  
She sighed softly, "It will be worse."  
"Now that I believe," he said, "Every time I think that it cannot get any worse, it does."  
"You just look at everything in such a negative light," she said with a sigh.  
"I had been starting to accept this..." Nephrite said softly, "I have nothing now..."  
"If you allow yourself, you can have things like friends."  
"Friends?" he repeated  
"If you had some you wouldn't be so unhappy." 

"Ah, he said, "I see. Well thank you for that wisdom."  
She sighed heavily.  
"Is there anything else you want?" he asked.  
She shook her head, "Never mind."  
"Then leave me alone," he closed his eyes.  
Ami got up with a sigh, heading towards the door. 

"Why?" Nephrite asked softly.  
She turned around, "Nani?"  
"Why are you so concerned?"  
"I... uh..." she went red.  
"The Shitennou and the Senshi are enemies."  
"Why do we have to be?" she asked, her eyes fixed on the door, "The prince and the princess want to be together. Why can't we work together...?"  
"The princess destroyed the earth," he said flatly.  
"It won't happen again," Ami said firmly, "I know it won't."  
"How do you know that?"  
"Because I believe in my friend."  
"But that doesn't answer my first question," he said softly. 

The girl swallowed, then shook her head slightly and slipped out the door. Ami leaned against the wall, her heart pounding. Why was she so concerned...? It didn't make any sense at all... 

Days passed. Things continued the way they had, but Nephrite did a better job at washing the windows. Ami tried to avoid him, just in case he asked her that awkward question again. 

Nephrite noticed that she was finally leaving him alone... that was what he had wanted... but... it didn't feel as good as he had hoped it would.  
As much as he hated to admit it, her smiles had been a bright spot... the only bright spot. 

The doors swung open and there she was – almost as though she had heard him thinking about her.  
She gave him a slight smile and waved her pass.  
Something that could possibly be called a smile flicked across his face.  
Ami turned bright pink and looked away. That had almost been a smile... Her heart thudded at that.  
Maybe he had listened to her... maybe he was going to try.  
Ami smiled slightly to herself as she headed into their room. 

Nephrite still wasn't happy, he was far from it, but... somehow... whenever he saw Mercury... he felt a little better.  
He saw Mercury again about half an hour later, the Moon Princess in tow. The latter didn't seem to notice him, but Ami offered him another shy smile.  
He ducked his head, but looked at her through his eyelashes.  
That was so cute it hurt... Ami couldn't help but give him a wider smile.  
Nephrite looked down again, busying himself with some papers on the desk until she left. 

Nephrite was standing behind the counter, half-listening to instructions from Motoki-baka give directions. He was looking through the glass at the street. Mercury was coming. 

She entered a few minutes later, carrying a paper bag. "Hi," she smiled at them both.  
"Ah Ami-chan," Motoki greeted her.  
Nephrite stood there silently as Mercury talked to Motoki.  
"Here," she offered, a little shyly, "I baked cookies..." she held out the bag to them.  
Motoki's eyes lit up, "Thank you Ami-chan!" he looked into the bag.  
The cookies were burnt... still he reached in and took one.  
Ami turned and held the bag out to Nephrite.  
He looked away, but then... he slowly reached into the bag. He took out a cookie and studied it, then took a bite.  
Ami watched and waited with a hopeful smile.  
"This... is awful..." he said, shoving the whole cookie in his mouth, then reaching in and taking another one, "Terrible."  
Ami blinked again. She wasn't quite sure what to make of this. 

When he realized that they were staring at him, he stopped.  
Ami gave him a slight smile.  
He half closed his eyes, hiding behind his eyelashes.  
Her smile grew. There was something remarkably lovely about that...  
He swallowed what was in his mouth and gave her a tiny smile.  
Ami's eyes lit up.  
Motoki saw the glances that the two were exchanging and he excused himself. 

"... Never had these before..." Nephrite murmured.  
She looked up at him, "You haven't?" 

He shook his head and reached into the bag for another one. They weren't good at all, but he couldn't stop eating them.  
Ami gave him another warm smile. 

"I..." he started, "I thought... about what you said..."  
"Hai?.." she asked softly.  
"And... that maybe you are right Mercury-san," Nephrite said softly, "I do have my life, such as it is."  
She nodded silently.  
"And I..." he hesitated, "I would like to try being friends... if you will help me."  
Ami smiled cutely, "I will try..."  
"I will try not to disappoint."  
She nodded, "I am sure you won't."  
"I am trying," he said softly, "I haven't broken anything in a long time...but... I don't like it."  
"Why?" she asked  
"it just... isn't right," he said softly, "It isn't home."  
"But after what Beryl did to you... would you want that to be your home?"  
He looked down again, "I don't know..."  
"Well... at least you're trying," she said/  
Nephrite nodded silently  
"And... you might even find you like it," she added hopefully.  
"I am trying," he said, studying the top of the counter.  
"You... can have the rest of the cookies," she said awkwardly, not sure of what else to say. 

"... The princess arrived already..." Nephrite said softly, "She's in your usual room."  
"Oh, alright... I should... go then..." she blushed a bit, "I will speak to you later..." Ami scuttled off.  
Nephrite watched her go, holding back a sigh. This would be so much easier if she wasn't a senshi. 

A few days later he was nervously pacing the lobby of Crown. Mercury-san hadn't arrived with the other senshi like she usually did. He stuffed his hands in his pocket, feeling the envelope. Maybe this wasn't a good idea... if she didn't come soon he didn't think he'd have the nerve. 

Suddenly she burst in through the doors, hair slightly messy, cheeks red from running. She gave him a smile. "Hello," she greeted, taking off her glasses to wipe the condensation from them.  
"Mer... Ami-san," he greeted.  
She smiled again – glad that he had finally started calling her by her name. She put her glasses back on.  
"I... wanted to talk to you..." Nephrite said softly.  
"Hai?"  
"About the food you brought..."  
"Hai?" she repeated, wondering where this was going.  
"I want to pay you back," he said softly, "And I..." he pulled the charm he had bought out of his pocket and put it into her hand.  
Ami went bright red and looked down at the charm in her hand. Her brown eyes sparkled... he had bought this for her... She couldn't help but smile. "Arigato Nephrite-san..."

Nephrite shyly returned her smile.  
Ami's heart fluttered. It was the first real smile that he had ever given her, and he looked very nice indeed.  
"...do you like it?" he asked softly.  
"I do," she sounded genuinely happy, "It's lovely."  
"I... I'm glad..." he looked down again shyly.  
Ami reached out and took his hand, holding it tightly. He slowly raised his eyes to meet hers, and he smiled again. 


End file.
